Salem's Woodbury School Would Cost $50 Million To Renovate

SALEM, NH — The School Board is starting to weigh financing options for the proposed Woodbury Middle School renovation project. According to Superintendent Michael Delahanty, the project's cost estimate is just under $50 million. A proposal for bonding of the project is expected to go before voters this March.

As part of the renovations, the school's kitchen would be moved to another part of the school, and the gymnasium space would be used for the new cafeteria. The sixth-grade wing, the library and the guidance office would be demolished, and the new gymnasium and fitness center would be located there instead, said Delahanty.

The project would take about 30 months to complete. If School District voters approve the warrant article for the project this March, construction would begin in the following six to eight months, according to Delahanty.

"We all agree the project is sorely needed," he said. "We feel the community is supportive of the Woodbury project, it's going to come down to what it's going to cost."

School Board members discussed the $50 million cost estimate during a planning session July 23. They considered whether to bond the project entirely as one chuck, or to break up the project into three different bonds. Delahanty said the three-bond method is what was used for renovations at Salem High School several years ago.

School Board member Bernard Campbell said he favored the idea of staggering the cost over three different bonds.

"We don't need to borrow any more than we have to in advance of where we need to be," he said.

School Board member Pamela Berry agreed, saying three separate bonds worked well for the high school project.

Delahanty said the School Board needs to decide by January on its chosen financing option, in order for the bonding proposal to be placed as a warrant article for the March 2020 School District vote. The School Board is expected to continue discussing the project over the next several months.